Zandr Fienversen
Zandr Fienversen is a Player Character in The Darkshard Chronicles and a recurring companion of the Moonwhisper Adventuring Party. "I am exactly what I need to be." Background Early Life Zandr was born as the first and only child of Vjorus and Adelaide, leaders of a small tribe of nomadic elves residing primarily in Trivonteer, a portion of the continent of Brayven surrounded by coasts. In elvish tradition, he was given a name that would follow him until adulthood, although that information is currently unbeknownst to him. "Zandr" is a moniker granted by himself in the aftermath of his separation. Growing up, his peers were few and far between, as elf children were largely rare, but he had many friends in older elves who appreciated his honesty and selflessness. From a young age, Zandr showed interest and prowess in the hunt, inspired by his powerful father who had fought for centuries against invaders of both the humanoid and animal nature. His mother Adelaide had also once been a strong warrior, but an injury shortly before Zandr's birth left her physically disabled and no longer capable of battle. As a child Zandr was friendly and well-behaved, but had a tendency for mischief and liked to impress. Somewhat smaller than the other elf children, it was not unusual for playtime to be punctuated by jeers and jabs at his height or the length of his ears. This tapered off, however, as it became clear that Zandr was a force to be reckoned with, especially with a bow in hand. He received instruction from Vjorus as well as a close family friend who both worked hard to shape Zandr into a proper heir for Vjorus' chieftain title, once the latter decided his years of rule were long behind him. On the verge of adulthood, Zandr was finally invited to participate in a journey alongside his elders that would solidify his training and significance among his people. This route took them to a port city on the coast of Brayven, where Vjorus would take great ceremony in passing the torch to his only son. However, nearly upon arrival Zandr and his companions were mysteriously separated, and Zandr was taken into the custody of a ship's captain who hustled him aboard a ship bound for Trystal, the great continent bordering the other side of the Iris. This was the last instance of Zandr having contact with any of his blood relatives. Trystal, and The Mythic Dawn After months of travel, Zandr and his begrudging ship companions arrived on Trystal, in another port town that allowed access to the rest of the continent as a stop on heavy trade routes. Suddenly forced to be on his own, this world was unfamiliar and frightening for Zandr, who hardly understood what it meant to be truly independent. For the first few weeks, Zandr made petty money through minor labor for those who could hardly be bothered to do it themselves, and on one evening in particular secured a small room for himself in a large tavern on the other side of town. The company was rough, mostly drunk for the sake of forgetting, but he was grateful to be sleeping in his own space. It came to be, however, that this would be the least restful of nights, as he fell under the evil eye of a spellcaster whose lager was more than he could handle and smaller than the chip on his shoulder. The events leading up to losing the memory of his name are still foggy in Zandr's memory, but they are punctuated by the bright lights of the spell, and his rescue by the woman named Chiaroscuro, who would later become a romantic staple in Zandr's lifetime. Eventually, leaving this new town was possible, and Zandr decided that it was time for him to explore. Using what he had learned back home and the new skills gained from his time on Trystal so far, he was able to safely traverse the continent and make a place for himself in Vinvale, a large city located in the middle of Trystal's temperate climate. By this time Zandr was an accomplished ranger, and made his living protecting the borders of the city from creatures and criminals alike, although he had little interest in contract work. After some time in Vinvale, wanderlust led him to travel once more, and he stumbled across the sleepy town of Quayth, located directly on the water and a week's journey from the border of the Arcane Rainforest. He felt most at home here, with its small-town feeling and hospitality extended readily to adventurers. It was here that he met his first and dearest companions, who were later invited to join the Mythic Dawn adventuring guild. Borrvir Anvilchucker, a half-elf and former soldier, was his primary partner in the group's dynamic, and the two grew very close over the course of their decades-long friendship. As a group, Zandr and his companions were hired to take on a multitude of tasks and contracts, among them being the hunt of a revenant on the edge of the Rainforest and the stifling of large-scale necromantic work by the lich Vincent Valkyrie. Despite their best efforts and general helpfulness, other members of Zandr's party were less-enthused by the promise of glory through the Mythic Dawn, and an unfortunate experience in Brink led to their banishment from both the city and the guild. A wanderer yet again, Zandr and his companions began to thrive on hearsay, and traveled to places where help was simply needed rather than hired. Over this period of Zandr's life, he came into irregular but passionate contact with Chiaroscuro, the woman who had bravely saved him from the spellcaster shortly after his arrival on Trystal. Birth of the Hybrid Shortly after the events of Brink, Zandr and his group discovered a lead into some of the events that were crippling trade and cities in the upper-middle section of Trystal. The Iris, a large, crater-shaped land mass separating Brayven and Trystal, had been believed to be the source of all dark magic and demons for centuries. In recent years, despite the work of the Sightless Paladins, creatures of unknown origin and power had begun to escape and wreak havoc across Trystal and parts of Brayven. Piqued, Zandr and friends made their way back to Quayth, where they discovered that the populace had mostly disappeared. Investigation by all four members of Zandr's party led them to an underground mine revealed to be the home of one of these creatures from the Iris, the demon Koleptora, in human form. It was the second time that this particular creature had drawn Zandr's attention, the first being its release from ancient bindings by a former member of Zandr's crew, where it had nearly ravaged them all. Taking down the demon was no easy task, and as their resources were depleting as well as their constitution, Koleptora was able to make a narrow escape. Zandr, Borrvir, and the others were left with the great task of relocating hundreds of villagers, many of them from Quayth, back to their respective homes. It was shortly revealed to the adventurers-turned-rescuers that a deadly parasite had been planted by Koleptora in some of the innocents' brains, which encouraged not only senseless torture, but cannibalism as well. Only through monumental effort and several weeks of exhaustive travel were Zandr and his companions able to safely escort the villagers with only minor casualties, with the reminder that it was ultimately fruitless—Koleptora was still out there, watching and waiting. It was this event that changed the course of Zandr's path. He decided after extensive thought that it was his duty to destroy this creature, even at the cost of his own life. This decision was largely unknown to his peers until he had gathered the necessary information to decide his plan of action, and was shocked to discover that it was nigh impossible to actually destroy a creature from the Iris. Instead, he sought to trap it, and use its blood to bind it to his body as a means of preventing it from haunting the world any further. Perhaps foolishly abandoning his peers and setting off to face the demon alone, Zandr was resolved to complete his task. He had resigned himself to his decision, and met the creature in its human shape for a fight to the death—or bind. In its rawest form, Koleptora was Zandr's greatest foe to date. Their battle was ceaseless, and the deck was stacked from the start. Desperation began to claim Zandr's thoughts and actions as his vision began to fade, while he appealed to the creature's superior nature as a distraction for completing the binding ritual. “Il witruouty, xe kulv zmyy!” A bleeding, open palm wound was the pathway through which the two were bound. Zandr still bears this scar, but does what he can to conceal it, whether that be through clothing or otherwise. In the process of merging with the demon, Zandr experienced a mental and physical rebirth, which left him nearly dead when the smoke faded and he was left gasping for breath, alone and severely wounded. Templar, and the Present During the time Zandr spent in Trystal, a powerful military known as the Templar had begun wiping out all sources of magic on Brayven. It was their belief that magic was the cause of all evil, and so did whatever they could to eradicate all forms of it—including non-humans and their children. Little word of the Templar had successfully spread to Trystal until Zandr's binding to Koleptora. This event caused a massive shift in the equilibrium of the continents, and was brought to the Templar's attention as a result of the first known humanoid-infernal fusion. Deemed the Hybrid, Zandr became the number one target of the Templar's conquest. Zandr spent the next few centuries of his life on the run, avoiding his former companions (those who still lived) and Chiaroscuro as much as possible, fearing this his presence would turn the Templar's wrath upon those he cared for the most. This was a period punctuated by a series of events significant for their mark on Zandr's past: Chiaroscuro's death, discovering that he'd been denied knowledge of a son for decades (followed by the realization that he was likely no longer living), and the rumor of a powerful archmage who possessed the ability to restore missing memories. With a heavy heart, one that he had carried for so long since being sent away from his home, Zandr began to make preparations for his journey across the great ocean, to the other side of the known world. Campaign History Relationships Romantic The initial and thus most influential romantic connection for Zandr was his dance with Chiaroscuro, a period that lasted for many years until her death not long after the birth of the Hybrid. Despite being from two different worlds, the young elf and the younger human fell in love very quickly, but were careful to keep their personal and professional lives separate for most of their relationship, though often to Zandr's protest. Chiaroscuro, alias of Priscilla Vayne, was born into an incredibly large and poor family that made ends meet through petty crime and beggary. A blonde human woman with cold grey eyes, her personal ambitions were motivated by a near-death experience and childhood poverty. After escaping a fate of forced prostitution, she focused her efforts on necromancy, reflecting a fascination with the afterlife and the possibility of bending the rules between life and death. As Zandr spent his time with the Mythic Dawn and later alongside his motley crew of adventurers, Chiaro made great strides in her work, although she never fully disclosed her true intentions to Zandr. Their meetings were often unplanned and coincidental, although this hardly tempered the passionate contact that frequently followed. This continued until roughly eight years after their first meeting, when at twenty-four Chiaroscuro discovered she was pregnant. Motherhood was less than desirable for the young woman, who wanted far less to do with an infant than she did her work. She birthed her son, Selric, alone at the home of an old friend named Dumont, a former monk who had housed and cared for her as a child once she'd escaped from her circumstances. Deeming her new son as mostly a burden and a distraction, she left most of the task of raising him to Dumont, who willingly cared for the boy as though he were his own. Selric's understanding of his parental situation came to him slowly, as his mother only selectively shared information when she wished. It was Dumont's peaceful influence combined with the knowledge that his father was a ranger-type that pushed Selric into a life of druidry. The desire to find his father lay secondary to the sacredness of nature, although it was a thought that possessed him constantly. Perhaps out of either shame or carelessness, Chiaroscuro kept the secret of Selric's birth to herself until he was sixteen, when her relationship with Zandr came to a painful head. Without the responsibility of caring for her son, Chiaroscuro's work began to consume her, and it was not unusual for her to disappear for days or weeks at a time. This combined with her growing neglect of her relationship with the elf drew him to anger, a feat that she had previously believed unattainable. It was at this time that Zandr decided their chapter had come to a close, and this realization changed Chiaroscuro's perspective for the rest of her life. Several centuries after Chiaroscuro's death, as he struggled to overcome his grief, Zandr shared a brief stint with Malvia, one of the elven children from Trivonteer who had once teased him relentlessly. The two shared a class similarity and spent most of their time hunting and drinking, celebrating their reunion in the present rather than focusing on the past. Malvia had narrowly escaped the clutches of the Templar before Vjorus' tribe had scattered for their safety, and was unable to provide insight as to their current whereabouts. For several weeks she and Zandr attempted to kindle nonexistent flames, until she disappeared into a misty morning-after, leaving a note with good wishes for the son of the great chieftain. As of the Tournament of Brass arc, Zandr is in a committed relationship with Wellaby Wells. Other Saryn - Zandr admires Saryn primarily for her combat abilities, but also for her resilience in the face of adversity. Having experienced her banishment firsthand, he understands the very special kind of pain in Saryn's eyes at the mention of her former homeland. He often wishes she wouldn't place so much responsibility on herself and simply wants her to be happy. A comment made by Thea has planted the seed of familial relationship to Saryn in Zandr's mind, though he doesn't consider it to have much validity. Koth - Prior to their introduction, hearsay placed an image of Koth in Zandr's mind as a fearsome, powerful man who would not take kindly to him joining the likes of the Moonwhisper party. This belief likely stemmed from underlying anxiety of openly participating in a group again, after having lurked behind-the-scenes for so long. However, much to his surprise, Zandr warmed up to Koth's friendly personality very quickly. He now regards Koth as a true and trusted friend, although he is very aware of the possible threat that lies beneath the orc's kind smile. Koth and Zandr relate on a deep level in regards to their personal relationships--Koth's anxieties concerning he and Saryn's lifetimes are very relevant to Zandr's former relationship with Chiaroscuro, although he is thrilled to know that the two have finally made their move despite this. Josen - Josen and Zandr are irrevocably intertwined through Sycorax, who has been identified as the reason for Zandr's lost memory. Initially, this knowledge encouraged a barrier of distrust between them on Zandr's part, but Josen's openness and variance from his mother's wickedness has turned that wall into crumbling dust. Josen's abilities remind Zandr very intensely of Chiaroscuro's studies which often stings his heart, but not enough for him to shy away from Josen's friendship. He is thankful that his drunken stumbling upon Laurel and Josen's evening has not incurred any wrath thus far. Eliphas - Eli is a puzzle that Zandr is constantly attempting to solve. The depth of the yuan-ti's involvement in both politics and (what Zandr assumes is) the criminal underground is beyond the elf's comprehension. For that reason, Zandr possesses a significant respect for the man and his charismatic abilities. He is ultimately ill-equipped to argue with Eli's instincts on strategy, though if ever asked to perform something reprehensible will not hesitate to refuse. On one hand, Zandr believes that Eli's suspicions regarding the demon verge on personal attack, but in light of recent discoveries has reluctantly begun to accept that they may be fitting after all. Skills, Abilities, and Magic Items Zandr's primary abilities are ranger-based. He is usually tasked with providing food and resources for his companions, and excels in ranged hunting and fighting. While not attuned to nature as a druid, he is knowledgeable about most terrain, although he tends to prefer forested areas and cities. As part of his absorption of the demon Koleptora, Zandr has also come into command of a variety of new spells and abilities granted to him by his demonic burden. These are typically large surges of power, such as an Eldritch Blast, that reflect the demon's strength. They are always accompanied by black smoke, as well as the markings and gold eyes that signify Zandr is relying on Koleptora's power. Once afraid of the capabilities of the beast, in recent decades Zandr has begun to accept that occasionally, usage of its resources is not only helpful, but necessary. His most prized possession is his magic Longbow of Piercing. It grants him the ability to conquer two enemies with a single arrow. This is especially useful from the shadows, where he often spends his time when fleeing from the searching eyes of the Templar forces. Also belonging to him are Bracers of Archery, useful in enhancing his abilities with a drawstring even further. A Flask of Endless Water was given to him by Wellaby in Blanchwood during the brief time before the crew journeyed to Brass. He is slowly coming to realize that, among other things, this gift was likely more than a symbol of good will. In his first match during the Tournament of Brass, Zandr competed against the devil valkyrie named Vaelai of Avernus, who wagered a "trophy" from her lastest hunt that she had not yet been able to tame. In what was perhaps one of the most difficult fights of his life, Zandr was victorious, and granted passage to the stall containing the beast that was to become his companion. Saeger the Blink Dog, a rather large and friendly creature, took to the ranger-warlock with ease, and the two are rarely seen apart in current time. Saeger appears to understand both verbal and non-verbal communication from his master, and is sensitive to changes in Zandr's demeanor. He has a special affinity for Wellaby and Saryn, though he generally enjoys the company of the other members of the Darkshard cast. Trivia - A variety of scars decorate Zandr's neck, mimicking the grasp of a large, clawed hand. Three on the left side, and one on the right. His right palm is also home to a large scar. They are reminders of the ritual performed to bind himself to the demon, Koleptora. - The cerulean markings respond to strong changes in Zandr's emotional state. If he is suddenly startled, for example, they are likely to flash along with the gold in his eyes until he has calmed down. - Certain items are essential to Zandr's wardrobe. The choker around his neck was a gift from a family friend who entrusted it to him as a child, with the promise that he would one day "grow to be as strong a warrior" as its previous owner. - The intense color of Zandr's eyes is a gift passed to him by powerful ancestors, who also bore the bright green that came to represent great strength and courage. Vjorus also possesses this trait. - Zandr is afraid of trees. A Potion of Wonder downed many centuries ago in a tournament very similar to Brass's left him with this unusual malady. Over time, he has tempered and managed to mostly overcome this fear, although lingering anxiety still strikes him in new and unfamiliar terrain. - Zandr's Favored Enemies are kobolds. He is proficient in their language. - While nowhere near a bardic star, Zandr has a pleasant, soothing singing voice.